"I WENT ALL HOT AND COLD"

The fifth Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival is winding down! You have until February 14th, 2015 to try hot chocolate drinks from 24 locations made specially for this festival. I've been to a few locations, the latest being Glenburn Soda Fountain & Confectionery, which is serving a rich, dark hot chocolate made with Avalon Dairy milk with a mini Birchwood Dairy vanilla ice cream cone (above). So cute and delicious!

"MAROCCHINO"

I also tried the "Marocchino" at Chocolaterie de la Nouvelle France. It is like a mocha but with drinking chocolate instead of milk so is much more rich. It is half drinking chocolate and half espresso. It is also served with a meringue flavour of your choice. You can chose half size or full size but I recommend half size because it is so rich!

"MADAGASCAR"

The first hot chocolate I had when the festival first started was the Madagascar at Thierry. It was $9 because it is made from a rare small plantation Ampamakia chocolate by Valrhona. It was served with a chocolate caramel. Thierry no longer serves this but has moved on to the "Dominican", which is probably also made from another special cocoa bean.


If you want to try any of these and more you better do it soon! Here is the list of places you can get hot chocolate from:

49th PARALLEL COFFEE ROASTERS + LUCKY'S DOUGHNUTS - New! (2 locations)
BEL CAFE
BELLA GELATERIA + TO DIE FOR BANANA BREAD
BUTTER BAKED GOODS - New!
CHEZ CHRISTOPHE - New!
CHOCOLATE ARTS
CHOCOLATERIE DE LA NOUVELLE FRANCE
DIVA AT THE MET - New! 
EAST VAN ROASTERS
FRENCH MADE BAKING 
GEM CHOCOLATES
GLENBURN SODA FOUNTAIN & CAFE - New!
KOKO MONK CHOCOLATES
LAST CRUMB CAFE
MINK CHOCOLATES & CAFE
SCHOKOLADE ARTISAN CHOCOLATE
SOIRETTE MACARONS & TEA
TERRA BREADS (3 locations)
THIERRY CHOCOLATERIE PATISSERIE CAFE
THOMAS HAAS (2 locations)
UVA WINE BAR + BITTERED SLING

I'm kind of interested in going to Mink Chocolates & Cafe. They are serving a hot chocolate topped with crickets! Yes, crickets! Weird, huh?

Cityfood Magazine is also hosting a contest where you can win a Grand Festival Prize consisting of gift certificates from all of our participating chocolate makers and cafes or a Festival Pass to the 2016 Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival! Get the details on their website! Good luck!